Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, the Democrat, tops Republican wrestling
executive Linda McMahon 54 - 37 percent in the U.S. Senate race, and leads her on every voter
measure, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.

This compares to a 55 - 35 percent Blumenthal lead in a June 10 survey by the
independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University.

McMahon leads the contest for the August 10 Republican primary with 52 percent of
likely voters, followed by 25 percent for Rob Simmons and 13 percent for Peter Schiff. This is
the first survey of likely primary voters and cannot be compared with earlier surveys of registered
voters.

"Ms. McMahon, however, has the momentum, even if the latest movement is only a small
three-point change. She is inching up on Blumenthal. In January, she trailed Blumenthal by 41
points. In every subsequent poll she has cut into his lead and now has cut that lead by 24 points.

"She still has a long way to go, but she has a lot of time and a lot of money."

65 - 24 percent that Blumenthal has the right kind of experience to be a U.S. Senator;

49 - 38 percent that McMahon does not have the right kind of experience;

67 - 24 percent that he cares about their needs and problems;

50 - 34 percent that she cares about their needs and problems;

60 - 28 percent that he is honest and trustworthy;

47 - 28 percent that she is honest and trustworthy;

71 - 19 percent that he has strong leadership qualities;

61 - 26 percent that she has strong leadership qualities.

"Linda McMahon's biggest problem with voters is that only 38 percent think she has the
right kind of experience to be a U.S. Senator, which tracks very closely with the percentage of
the vote she gets against Blumenthal," Dr. Schwartz said. "She has improved her experience
number slightly, but she must do more to convince Connecticut voters that her background as an
executive in professional wrestling is the right kind of experience."

President Obama's Approval

Connecticut voters approve 50 - 44 percent of the job President Barack Obama is doing,
down from 53 - 42 percent June 10 and his lowest score ever in the state. Independent voters
disapprove 49 - 43 percent, down from a 48 - 46 percent split last month.

From July 7 - 13, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,367 Connecticut registered voters
with a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points. Also from July 7 - 13, Quinnipiac University
conducted a separate survey of 854 Connecticut likely Republican primary voters with a margin
of error of +/- 3.4 percentage points. These likely voters were selected from lists of people who
have voted in past elections.

The Quinnipiac University Poll conducts public opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey,
Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research.
For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201,
or follow us on Twitter.

THE FOLLOWING RESULTS ARE BASED ON A POLL OF 854 LIKELY REPUBLICAN PRIMARY
VOTERS

5REP. If the Republican primary for United States Senator were being held today,
would you vote for Linda McMahon, Rob Simmons, or Peter Schiff? (If undecided
q5REP) As of today, would you say that you lean a little more toward McMahon,
Simmons, or Schiff? (This table includes "Leaners".)

TREND: (If registered Republican) If the 2010 Republican primary for United
States Senator were being held today and the candidates were Rob Simmons, Linda
McMahon and Peter Schiff, for whom would you vote? (Data available upon request
back to May 2009)

37. In general, if a wealthy candidate relies on their own money to fund their
political campaign, does that make you more likely to vote for that candidate,
less likely to vote for that candidate, or doesn't it make a difference?

38. In general, if a candidate uses public financing to fund their political
campaign, does that make you more likely to vote for that candidate, less likely
to vote for that candidate, or doesn't it make a difference?